Cite as: 540 U. S. 12 (2003)
Per Curiam
1473, 640 N. E. 2d 845 (1994). The import of the court's decision was clear: Respondent failed to prove he was prejudiced because any error committed by counsel was harmless. In respondent's words, "The state court . . . determined that since [respondent] was the only individual charged, the jury must have determined that [respondent] was the principal offender." Brief in Opposition 2.
Having exhausted his avenues for relief under state law, respondent filed a habeas petition in the District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. The District Court concluded that the Ohio Court of Appeals' decision was an unreasonable application of clearly established federal law because it was contrary to our opinions in Apprendi v. New Jersey, 530 U. S. 466 (2000), and Sullivan v. Louisiana, 508 U. S. 275 (1993). In light of this error, as well as others not relevant to this opinion, the court granted respondent's petition in part and issued a writ of habeas corpus as to the death sentence. Esparza v. Anderson, No. 3:96- CV-7434 (Oct. 13, 2000), App. to Pet. for Cert. 41a-240a. The Court of Appeals affirmed the District Court, holding that the Eighth Amendment precluded respondent's death sentence and that harmless-error review was inappropriate. The State of Ohio petitioned for a writ of certiorari, which we now grant, along with respondent's motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis.
A federal court may grant a state habeas petitioner relief for a claim that was adjudicated on the merits in state court only if that adjudication "resulted in a decision that was contrary to, or involved an unreasonable application of, clearly established Federal law, as determined by the Supreme Court of the United States." 28 U. S. C. § 2254(d)(1). The Court of Appeals, however, failed to cite, much less apply, this section.
A state court's decision is "contrary to" our clearly established law if it "applies a rule that contradicts the governing law set forth in our cases" or if it "confronts a set of facts
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